


Sometimes the Best Decisions (Are Ones You Don't Remember Making)

by bansheequeen (queenbanshee), xtremeroswellian



Category: Smallville
Genre: Angst, BAMF Chloe Sullivan, F/M, Humor, Plane Crash, Suicide Squad, Time Travel, Why does no one knock first
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:41:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 20,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24208384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenbanshee/pseuds/bansheequeen, https://archiveofourown.org/users/xtremeroswellian/pseuds/xtremeroswellian
Summary: "The plane crash, Ollie..." she said quietly, brushing her fingers over his cheek, "it was Lex."Oliver watched her for a moment, feeling unsettled. "Chloe, Lex is dead," he said softly, turning his head and kissing her fingertips.Chloe blinked a couple of times at that and shook her head, "you know that isn't true, Ollie." She shifted, sitting up a little.He sat up, as well, frown deepening. "Chloe, I killed him, remember? I blew him up in a truck."
Relationships: Oliver Queen/Chloe Sullivan
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

Oliver glanced at Lois and raised his eyebrows as he moved over toward the phone on his desk. "Maybe it's time for me to pay the piper," he said quietly, reaching down and pressing the intercom button on his phone. "Send them in," he said to his secretary. Even as the words escaped his mouth, he felt a jolt of fear go through him, and his eyes widened as a bright light suddenly engulfed the room. "What the he--"

Chloe blinked as the strong light took over the headquarters and instantly dropped her hands from the keyboard, turning around with wide eyes and gasping, "Oliver?"

He was laying facedown on the floor, but he'd have recognized _that_ voice anywhere and he lifted his head slowly, confusion and shock warring for control. "Chloe?"

She rushed to his side and knelt down next to him a second later, "oh, thank God," she whispered, reaching to touch his face, "are you hurt?"

He blinked, his eyebrows furrowing as he reached up to cup her cheek, as well. "No? I don't think so anyway..."

"How did you get here?" She asked quietly, leaning down and closer to him as she searched his eyes.

"I have no idea," he admitted, not taking his eyes off her. Wordlessly he slid his arms around her, pulling her close and pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

"It doesn't matter," she whispered, wrapping her arms tightly around him as she slid down further and pressed her lips to the top of his head as she closed her eyes tightly. "All that matters is that you're safe."

"I am. Thanks to you," he murmured, his arms tightening around her a little involuntarily. "God, Chloe. You scared the hell out of me."

Chloe frowned a little at that and shook her head, moving to a sitting position so he was half laying on her lap, "I think that's my line." She whispered quietly, running her fingers through his hair.

Of course she'd been scared when the Suicide Squad had abducted him. But she'd saved his life. Not that it would have been unlikely for a group like SS to renig on whatever deal she'd made and just go ahead and kill him. He blew out a breath, meeting her eyes for a moment and then kissing her softly on the mouth.

She kissed him back and cupped his cheek in her hand, breaking the kiss a moment later, "I love you," she whispered, brushing her nose against his.

He couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face at hearing her say the words in person. "I love you, too," he whispered, kissing her again as he pulled her closer to him.

Chloe slid down to the floor a little, pulling him to her as she kissed him back for a long moment before breaking the kiss again, "are you sure you're not hurt?" She whispered, knowing they wouldn't stop themselves if they went any further.

"Pretty sure," he told her, sliding his hand up and into her hair.

She moved until she was laying on the floor next to him and kissed him once more, deeply this time as her eyes teared up.

Oliver paused when he caught sight of her tears, gently brushing one away with his thumb. "Hey," he whispered, shaking his head. "What is it?"

She shook her head slightly and took a deep breath, "I thought I had lost you for good this time," she said quietly, leaning into his touch.

His expression softened at that and he stroked her cheek lightly. "Hey. I'm not that easy to get rid of," he said softly, kissing the corner of her mouth.

"It was him, Ollie," she whispered, cupping his cheek, "he set up the plane. He has to know or somehow remember it."

He frowned a little, shaking his head. "What do you mean?"

"The plane crash, Ollie..." she said quietly, brushing her fingers over his cheek, "it was Lex."

Oliver watched her for a moment, feeling unsettled. "Chloe, Lex is dead," he said softly, turning his head and kissing her fingertips.

Chloe blinked a couple of times at that and shook her head, "you know that isn't true, Ollie." She shifted, sitting up a little.

He sat up, as well, frown deepening. "Chloe, I killed him, remember? I blew him up in a truck."

"I do remember it," she told him, lifting her hand to his head and cocking it a little so she could take a better look, "you must have hit your head."

"I don't think I did," he said uncertainly. "Nothing hurts."

"You don't remember Clark telling us he saw Lex?" She said quietly, "or that Lex killed Tess?"

He stared at her, his chest tightening. " _What?_ Tess is dead?"

Her eyes widened and she stared at him, "Oh." She shook her head, "I'll call Emil. You need to get checked up." She said, slowly pulling away from him and standing up.

Oliver started to respond, when he finally caught sight of their surroundings. "Emil knows where we are?" There was a hint of hurt in his voice.

"Of course," she frowned then swallowed hard, looking down at him, "do you... not know where we are?"

"Should I?" He didn't look up at her this time as he rose to his feet, reaching up to loosen his tie.

Her chest tightened painfully at that and she took a deep breath, "we're home, Ollie. Well, under it."

Oliver glanced around, blinking a couple of times. "Pretty sure I'd remember if _we_ lived anywhere, Chloe."

"We're under the mansion." She said quietly, pursing her lips together and motioning toward an elevator to her right.

"Mansion?" he echoed, looking toward the elevator. His stomach tightened a little and he quickly looked back at her.

"In Star City?" She asked quietly.

He held his breath at that. "My parents' mansion?"

Chloe nodded a little and took a deep breath, "we just moved here about a month ago."

Oliver simply stared at her, shock on his face.

She let out a breath and nodded a little, "I'll call Emil. I'm sure it's just a temporary memory loss from the crash."

"Wait." He shook his head, stepping forward and resting a hand on her shoulder. "Chloe, I don't remember any crash. The last thing I remember is telling my secretary to send in the press."

"Send in the press for what?" She asked, frowning as she turned to look at him.

Oliver hesitated a moment. "I was going to tell the world who I am. Who I _really_ am."

"You were going to tell the press about Green Arrow?" She frowned.

"Yes," he whispered.

"Ollie," she whispered back to him, taking a step forward, "that happened two years ago."

He stared at her. "...what?"

"You don't remember me coming back?" She asked quietly.

"No, I don't remember--" His voice trailed off as his gaze landed on her left hand, on the two rings that circled her finger there. Wordlessly he looked up at her once more, his eyes wide.

She looked at him questioningly for a moment then let out a breath, "oh. I guess... you don't remember that either?"

"We got married?" he whispered, reaching out and taking her hand in his.

Chloe nodded slightly and took a deep breath then frowned as she looked at _his_ hand, "you must have lost your ring."

His chest tightened at that, and he swallowed hard, feeling overwhelmed. "I think I need to sit," he said softly.

"Let's go upstairs," she said quietly, taking his arm, "I can call Emil and get you some tea."

"All right." Without really thinking about it, he slid his hand down her arm, linking their fingers together, dazed.

Chloe squeezed his hand tightly as they stepped into the elevator, "it might be a good idea to keep you awake, in case you have a concussion."

"Something's not right about all of this," he murmured, glancing down at her.

She cocked her head a little and looked up at him, "what makes you say that?"

"Did you see a bright light before I showed up here?"

"...Yeah? I assumed someone had teleported you back here." She admitted.

He blinked. "That can be done?"

Chloe let out a breath and nodded a little, "maybe I shouldn't tell you anything else not to overwhelm you anymore," she said quietly, pulling him out of the elevator and into the mansion.

"Slow down," he urged her, even as he followed closely, squeezing her hand.

She paused and turned to face him, "I will call Emil and maybe J'onn so he can look in your head and make sure everything is okay."

"Chloe, I'm fine," he said softly, shaking his head. "I'm not hurt."

"You don't remember the last two years of your life, Oliver." She said quietly, searching his eyes with worry, "that's far from okay."

Oliver paused at that. "I vividly remember telling Jeanie to send in the press. Lois was in my office. Then there was this bright flash of light and suddenly I was..." He glanced around, then back down at her. "...here."

Chloe frowned and cocked her head slightly, "what are you trying to say?"

He reached out, cupping her cheek in his hand. "That I'm not sure I've forgotten anything," he admitted.

She took a deep breath and stared at him, "that you somehow time-traveled here." She told him.

"We've dealt with things like that before," he said quietly.

"I know," she held her breath then shook her head slightly, "but that means that the other version of you is still missing."

"How long ago was the plane crash?"

"Two days." She said quietly, "the entire League is out there, they haven't found anything."

His chest tightened. "How bad was it?"

Chloe let out a breath and pulled away from him, "there was an explosion mid-air," she rubbed her hands over her face, "over the Pacific. There is no land anywhere around it for miles."

Oliver held his breath for a moment, watching her. "So there's no sure way of knowing if..." His voice trailed off.

She pursed her lips together and shook her head, "I have been looking at satellite images since Watchtower told me about it, but there is too much smoke--" her voice wavered, "and fire. I can't see anything."

He stepped forward, resting his hands on her shoulders. "You have to know that if he _is_ out there, he's doing everything in his power to come back to you," he whispered.

Her chest tightened and she nodded a little, "I just need to find him."

"I'll do what I can to help," he said softly.

She stilled for a moment, eyes widening as she turned toward him, "what if you showed up here _because_ something happened?"

His eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Chloe's stomach turned and she stared at him, "what if you're here so you can stop it from happening back then?"

He pursed his lips. "Or maybe it was to stop me from going to the press." 

Her eyes narrowed slightly at that, "maybe both things are connected."

Oliver considered that for a moment. "You could be right."

"I need to find him." She said firmly. "And you need to stop this from ever happening in the first place."

He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, nodding. "We will," he said quietly.

"Okay..." she breathed and nodded a little, "I still want to call J'onn and make sure that... you're not him."

"I understand," he murmured, watching her.

Chloe watched him for a moment, her stomach turning as she lowered her head and took his hand in hers, checking his ring finger. Her chest tightened when she saw no ring line or anything else on it and then she nodded. "I'll go call him." She whispered.

Oliver lifted her hand to his mouth, kissing her knuckles lightly. "All right."

She looked at him for a moment then reluctantly pulled her hand away from him, "you should take a seat, I'll be right back."

"Yeah, okay." He gazed at her for a moment, resisting the urge to wrap his arms around her again. It had been so long since he'd held her. He raked a hand through his hair and moved over to sit down on the small sofa. 

Chloe left for the kitchen and came back a moment later, carrying a cup of tea for him and approaching the couch quietly, "he should be here soon."

"Thank you," he said quietly, taking the tea from her and patting the seat beside him.

She nodded slightly and pursed her lips together, "so... you were about to do the interview when you disappeared?"

"Yeah," he agreed, nodding as she sat down beside him.

"So I haven't been around?" She whispered, "since your kidnapping?"

He looked down at his cup of tea for a moment. "No. It's been weeks since I've seen you."

Her face fell and she nodded a little, "I'm sorry." She told him quietly, stopping herself from touching him.

"At least I know now you're still alive." He let out a breath.

"I was fine..." she whispered, looking down, "and I'll be back."

"How long?" he asked, not looking at her.

"Not much longer." She promised, reaching for his arm this time, "we got married in February." She admitted.

His eyes widened just a little. " _This_ February?"

Chloe held her breath at the look on his face and smiled a little then looked away.

"Okay, I didn't uh...I didn't see _that_ coming." His eyes were still wide.

"I shouldn't tell you anything else," she said quietly then turned to look at him, "but I know how much you're hurting right now and you'll be okay."

Oliver met her eyes, holding her gaze for a long moment. "And we've been okay?"

Her chest tightened at that and she nodded, "yeah," she told him, "it's been... like always except better."

He let out a relieved breath, nodding as he watched her closely. "Good," he whispered.

"How could it be any other way?" Chloe asked him quietly.

"I tend to be a screw-up," he reminded her just as quietly, reaching up and tucking some hair behind her ear without really thinking about it.

"No, Ollie," she said quietly, "you're not. You may think that way but I will do my best to prove you wrong."

He smiled faintly at that, exhaling slowly as he searched her eyes. "I've missed you so much," he murmured.

"I know." She told him, covering his hand with hers, "staying away from you was the hardest part about that entire thing."

"Why did you?" He shook his head a little.

"She, or... the past version of me, I guess, should be the one to tell you." Chloe whispered to him.

He looked down at the floor, then rubbed a hand over his face. "Yeah. Probably."

She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand gently before standing up, "I will ask J'onn to help us figure out a way to send you back," she said quietly, "but I'll need to get back downstairs and keep trying to find him."

He was silent for a moment. "Or I help you find him before I go back."

"I don't want you to be here any longer than you have to," she said quietly, "we don't want things to change too much."

"I know. And I get that. But I can't leave here without knowing you're all right. And if our situations were reversed..." He raised his eyebrows a little.

Chloe took a deep breath and shook her head, "no, if... something happened to him, you need to go back. You need to make sure it doesn't happen this way." She said firmly.

"Okay, we don't know for sure what happened," he pointed out. "So let's not jump to conclusions."

"Yes," she agreed, "but if he is sure you are from the past, you will need to leave, Oliver."

"All right, let's just take one step at a time," he said, resting his hands on her shoulders. "Okay?"

She took a deep breath and nodded a little, looking at him for a moment, "you should rest for now. J'onn should be here soon."

"I'm not tired," he said quietly. "But there is something I need," he admitted.

"Yeah?" She asked, holding her breath.

"Can I hug you?" he asked uncertainly.

Her face softened and she stepped closer, nodding a little and wrapping her arms tightly around him.

Oliver wrapped his arms around her, as well, hugging her back just as tightly and burying his face in her hair as he shut his eyes.

Chloe closed her eyes and sighed deeply, having gone two days without her husband was too long, she knew this version of him had been even longer without her, even if she couldn't reassure him as much as she'd like, she could still do this for him. And it would help give her strength too.


	2. Chapter 2

J'onn had gotten there less than ten minutes ago and he was currently and they had wasted no time in starting the mind reading. Chloe was growing more and more impatient as she watched the two of them, when the older man dropped his hand away from Oliver's temple, she took a step closer to them, her eyes wide, "what did you find?" She asked quickly.

"He doesn't seem to have any memories past those of calling in the press conference and then arriving here." J'onn said calmly, turning to look at her. "It does seem that he has somehow time-traveled."

Oliver's chest tightened as her face fell just a little. "It doesn't mean we're not going to find _your_ Oliver," he told her, calm determination in his voice.

Chloe held her breath and nodded slightly, "Thank you," she told J'onn then turned to Oliver again, "I know. But it means we need to send you back."

"And we will. But frankly, I don't even know how I got here."

"I know, Oliver. But we will figure it out and you can't stay here too long, things are probably already different as is and I don't want to risk anymore. I don't want your life to be that different." She told him firmly.

"And what about your life?" he argued, shaking his head.

"I don't want that to be different either," she told him, her chest tight.

His expression softened at that and he moved over to her. "I know," he murmured. "But until we figure out how to get me back, the least I can do is try to help you find your Oliver."

Chloe held her breath and nodded slightly, looking down then back at him, "okay, but we will need to work on both at the same time."

"Fair enough," he agreed, watching her closely.

"If you don't need my help, I'll get back out there and assist Clark." J'onn told them.

Chloe nodded slightly and took a deep breath, "thanks, J'onn, I'll order food soon and let you guys know when it's here."

Oliver offered the other man a small smile and then looked back at Chloe silently.

She watched as the other man became invisible and turned to Oliver once more, seeing him made this so much harder but almost easier at the same time because even though she knew that this version of him wasn't _her_ husband, it was comforting to know she could send him back to his time and he could stop this from happening.

He drew in a breath, raising his eyebrows a little. "So where do we start?"

"With you telling me what you would have done in that situation." She said firmly, holding his gaze.

"If I was conscious and the plane was going down, I would have done my best to grab a parachute," he told her seriously.

She let out her breath and nodded slightly, "good. I was hoping so, which is why I was looking at the satellite images." she said quietly.

"Where did the plane go down?" he questioned.

"In the middle of the ocean, Clark found a small island there but no sign of him."

He considered that for a moment. "How have the weather conditions been since the crash?"

Chloe shook her head a little, "partially cloudy, but it was at night." She told him wondering what he was thinking.

"So no big storms?" he asked, glancing at her.

"Nothing I could locate." She told him, watching him closely, "what are you thinking?" She asked finally.

"That as long as the weather's calm, I'm a good swimmer. I mean, I'm no AC or anything, but..." He drew in a breath.

She sighed softly and nodded then rubbed her hands over her face. "I know you are. But... Clark has looked everywhere and so has J'onn. He couldn't have gone that far."

"You might be surprised how far a person can get when they're running on adrenaline in a life-or-death situation," he said gently. "And remember, I had practice already."

Chloe nodded slightly and took a deep breath, "they are still looking."

"What does your gut tell you?"

"That I need to find him." She said quietly, holding his gaze.

"That he's still here," he said just as quietly.

"I don't think I can believe anything else." Chloe told him sincerely, her chest tightening again.

"There's probably a reason you can't, Chloe."

"You think he's out there?" She asked. She knew there was no way he could possibly know one way or the other but he was a version of her husband and they had to be somehow connected to each other.

"I think if he's got you to come back to? One way or another, he's gonna find his way home."

Her face crumbled slightly and she nodded, taking a deep breath, "I will... run a search and see if I can find anything on how you got here and then we can go back to him."

He lifted his hand to her cheek. "He'll be okay. And we'll find him." There was certainty in his voice.

"Thank you," she told him quietly, "but I meant what I said, Oliver. When you go back, you change this, you make sure it never happens."

"I'll do my best," he murmured, searching her eyes.

"Thank you," she told him, leaning into his touch for a moment, reluctantly pulling away.

He nodded slightly, reluctantly dropping his hand down to his side once more.

Chloe took a deep breath and started back to one of her stations, she would probably need help from other members of the team to be able to send him back, but she couldn't bring herself to distract them from their current mission right now anymore than she had to. She just hoped her gut feeling was right.

* * *

He woke up feeling more groggy than he ever remembered feeling before. And he was still dripping wet. Opening his eyes slowly, everything was blurry at first, and then slowly began to come into focus. And when it did, he realized he was being carried. His eyebrows furrowed a little and then he blinked a couple of times. "J'onn?"

"Almost there," he said quietly. "You'll be cold."

"Am I dead?"

"No," J'onn answered, "we were lucky."

"Is she all right?"

"She will be soon." He assured him, nodding slightly as he flew over Star City.

Oliver shut his eyes once more, ignoring the wave of nausea that washed over him as J'onn flew them away. At least he wasn't flying as fast as Clark usually did. That was a plus.

"Rest," J'onn told him, lifting a hand to Oliver's temple.

And with that, everything grew dark once more.

* * *

Chloe didn't see anything, but she heard J'onn's voice inside her head saying they were getting back. She assumed that meant him and Clark so she took a deep breath and dropped her hands from the keyboard, turning toward Oliver who was standing by another station, "J'onn is on his way back." She said quietly.

"He and Clark?" He raised his eyebrows a little.

"I think so," she nodded slightly, heading toward the elevator, "or maybe Bart."

His expression brightened just a little at that. "Been awhile since I've seen Bart," he admitted, following her.

"It has?" She frowned a little, looking over at him as she stepped inside.

"Yeah." He didn't look at her, not wanting to admit that he'd been pushing the others away since the younger Chloe had vanished from his life with no signs of returning.

Chloe shook her head slightly, knowing instantly that that was what he'd been doing, "he'd be glad to help, you know?"

"There's not much he can do," he said quietly.

She looked down and took a deep breath, remaining quiet until the elevator doors slid open, she felt wind blowing, not as strong as when Clark and Bart arrived but the one she'd been used to getting from J'onn's arrival. As soon as she turned toward the martian and saw her husband in his arms, her eyes widened, "Ollie?"

"He's still sleeping. We need to get him into dry clothes," J'onn told her gently.

"He's okay?" She asked, stepping closer to them and lifting a hand to Oliver's neck.

"Tired, and cold. Probably hungry. But he'll be fine," he assured her.

"Where was he?" She asked without taking her eyes away from him, her eyes tearing up.

"Clinging onto some debris from the plane wreck."

Oliver swallowed hard as he watched the slightly older Chloe stared at the slightly older version of him.

She pressed her lips to his temple for a long moment and took a deep breath then whispered, "take him to the bedroom, I'll change him."

J'onn nodded slightly, glancing at the younger Oliver for a moment before heading down the hallway.

Chloe rubbed her hands over her face then started to follow J'onn but stopped and turned to the other version of her husband and gave him a tearful smile before following down the hall.

He smiled back faintly and let out a breath as he leaned against the wall. Looked like at least one version of them was going to get a happy ending.

* * *

Chloe had been sitting next to her husband since J'onn had left a few minutes ago. She had changed him and they had piled blankets over him then helped him drink some water. At least he wasn't shaking anymore. She lifted her hand to his hair and brushed it back, away from his face when she felt a presence behind her. She didn't have to turn to know who it was, "he'll be okay."

"I figured," he said softly, not stepping into the room. He leaned against the door frame, watching her intently.

"You can come in," she whispered quietly, turning to look at him over her shoulder.

He shook his head a little. "No, it's okay. I'm good here."

She watched him for a long moment then took a deep breath and turned toward her husband once more, "thank you," she told the younger man, "for helping me keep it together."

"It's the least I could do," he told her softly.

"You owe me nothing," she told him, "especially now."

Oliver was silent for a moment. "You guys will be okay now."

"So will you." She said firmly, turning toward him again, "but things will be different for you."

He didn't look convinced, but he shrugged a little and glanced at his older self. "This is weird."

Chloe smiled a little at that and nodded, "I'm sure."

Oliver reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. "I should probably get out there and start trying to find a way back."

"J'onn is already letting the others know what is going on," she told Oliver, "but if you're uncomfortable, you can go ahead and research."

He nodded a little and pushed away from the door frame, turning to head away.

"Oliver," she called.

"Yeah?" He raised his eyebrows a little as he glanced back at her.

"She's at the Suicide Squad Headquarters," she told him, her stomach tight as she kept her eyes on her husband, "she thinks everyone will be safer if she remains an insider for the time being, but it won't matter. You can help her with it, you just can't let anyone else know where you're going."

He held his breath. "It'll change things," he whispered.

"I know," she took a deep breath and turned toward him again, "but you have already wasted too much time apart," she said quietly, holding his gaze, "and you're _always_ stronger together. Even if she won't admit it yet, she _knows_ it's true."

Oliver swallowed hard, gazing back at her. "What you have now...it won't exist anymore. Will it?"

Her eyes teared up a little and she shrugged slightly, "I don't know." She admitted, "but there is no reason why you should go through all this pain if things will already change." She looked back at her husband, "we're together and that's all that matters. You deserve the same."

"I won't let her down," he whispered. "You have my word."

Chloe nodded a little and took a deep breath, "I know. You never would."

"Not intentionally."

"Not even if you tried," she said quietly, brushing her fingertips over her husband's face gently.

A tiny smile touched his mouth at that. "Good luck," he whispered as he backed out of the room.

"You too." She told him, leaning down and kissing her husband's cheek gently.

"Thanks," he murmured, heading down the hall.

He had a feeling he was going to need it.


	3. Chapter 3

Chloe didn't leave her husband's side for hours, his cheeks weren't as pale as they had been when J'onn first brought him in and when she felt his grip on her hand tighten, she shifted on the bed and looked up at him from where she was now laying down rather than sitting by his side. She pushed herself up slightly and held her breath, keeping her eyes on his face but remaining quiet.

"Am I dreaming?" he murmured.

Her face softened and she squeezed his hand slightly. "Only if we're having the same dream."

He opened his eyes slowly and then smiled a little. "Boy, are you a sight for sore eyes."

"I can say the same," she whispered, smiling softly as she leaned closer and kissed the corner of his mouth.

He turned his head and kissed her softly, lifting his free hand to her hair.

She closed her eyes tightly and kissed him back, pulling away a moment later and taking a deep breath, opening her eyes to look at him, "are you okay?"

"Yeah, I think so. A lot better now."

Chloe nodded and relaxed a little, reaching over him for a bottle of water, "are you hurt?"

"Just tired," he assured her.

"Okay," she shifted closer and lifted the bottle to his mouth, "drink slowly and then you can rest."

"I don't want to rest," he said quietly, taking a slow drink. "I just want to look at you."

Chloe's face softened as her chest tightened, "that's all I've been doing since J'onn brought you home."

Oliver brushed his thumb over her cheek and kissed her lightly.

"I love you," she whispered against his lips, kissing him again.

"I love you," he whispered back.

She lowered her lips to his cheek and kissed it then rested her forehead against his temple, "I almost lost you again."

He shifted slightly, turning toward her. "No way. I'll always find my way back to you. One way or another."

Chloe smiled a little and laid back down next to him, "you better never have to again."

"I'll work on that," he promised.

She sighed deeply and nodded, "I have a million of questions for you," and she also had to tell him about his other self, "but it can wait."

"Just as long as you're not going anywhere." He rested his forehead against hers.

"I'm not leaving your side," she promised, letting go of his hand and wrapping her arm around him, "I shouldn't have in the first place."

Oliver wrapped his arm around her, as well. "Ditto."

"We need to plan everything better." She said firmly, "you go, I go."

Oliver gently stroked her hair. "Okay," he whispered. "And vice versa."

Chloe took a deep breath and nodded, searching his eyes, "if something happens, we'll be together."

"That's how we should always be," he murmured.

Her chest tightened and she nodded a little, brushing her nose against his, "always."

Oliver nodded and kissed her once more.

Chloe kissed him back for a long moment, relaxing a little before breaking the kiss, "I need to ask one thing."

"Sure. What is it?" he asked quietly.

"If you could change anything about the past two years," she said quietly, brushing her fingers over his back, "what would it be?"

His eyebrows furrowed a little bit. "That's a weird question."

"I'll explain later," she promised, searching his eyes, "but I need you to tell me."

"Knowing what I know, I'm not sure I'd change anything," he murmured, watching her.

"And if you could stop the bad things from happening and shape a new life?" She asked, keeping her eyes on him.

Oliver shifted a little on the bed, cupping her cheek in his hand. "Tell me what's going on," he said quietly.

"I'm not entirely sure..." She whispered, "but somehow, a younger version of yourself has ended up here."

At that, he blinked a couple of times. "What?"

Chloe took a deep breath and nodded slightly, "we're still not entirely sure how it happened. But he seems to be from two years ago." 

"Two years ago..." His voice trailed off and his eyes widened a little. "When you were gone."

She nodded slightly, "just as you were about to announce to the world about Green Arrow."

"So he hasn't..." He shook his head.

"No." She told him, "and I told him not to."

His eyebrows furrowed. "But that'll change everything," he whispered.

"Not for us." She said quietly. "But things are already different for him, Ollie."

Oliver's eyes were filled with concern. "But part of what makes us who we are--together and otherwise--is what we've been through together."

Chloe held her breath at that, searching his eyes, "you don't think they will be with each other if they don't go through the same things?"

"I don't know," he whispered. "I hope so."

"I also told him where she is," Chloe admitted, looking down, "I don't want him to hurt anymore, Ollie."

His expression softened and he kissed her forehead. "We love each other. We have for a long time." He tucked some hair behind her ear.

"Yes we have," she whispered, "and I figured if they are together, things won't be as hard."

"Here's hoping," he whispered back, kissing her softly on the mouth.

Chloe kissed him back and relaxed a little, nodding slightly as they broke the kiss, "I just want them to be happy without all the trouble."

"That'd be nice," he agreed softly, tugging her closer to him.

She shifted closer and kissed him once again, "and anything else, you can help him undo or stop."

Oliver nodded a little. "We'll figure it out."

"I know we will," she said quietly, "and so will they."

* * *

It was much later when Chloe finally left her husband's side, he had been falling asleep so she told him she'd go talk to his younger self, but she didn't plan on being gone long.

She wasn't surprised to find him in their secret basement, researching. She knew he had just recently picked up more research skills, some she had taught him herself, but mostly, while he was looking for _her_.

With a deep breath, she stepped out of the elevator, "Oliver?" She called.

He turned quickly, relaxing almost instantly when he spotted her. "Everything okay?"

She smiled softly and nodded a little, "yeah, everything is okay. How is it going?" 

Oliver leaned back in the chair, exhaling. "Okay," he said softly.

"What did you find?" She asked quietly, walking up to him. 

"Nothing," he told her, sighing.

"Oh," she frowned a little, "well, I can give you a hand?" 

He was quiet for a moment, then slowly rose to his feet, nodding.

Chloe watched him closely and nodded. Now that she knew her husband was back and safe, she felt like she would really be able to concentrate on helping this version of him. "Did you look for glitches?" 

"Glitches?" He cocked his head to the side.

"For lack of a better word," she nodded, "it's almost like a hole in the atmosphere. It happens whenever someone time travels." 

"Oh." He raised his eyebrows a little. "No, I didn't...look for that."

"Here," she told him, moving over to a station, "I'll show you." 

Nodding, he followed her silently, then sat down in a chair beside her, glancing at her sideways.

Chloe pulled up the satellite images and did a search for around the time when he got there. She scanned then for a moment then paused, "there," she pointed at what looked almost like a lightning bolt except it was a single ray. 

"Oh." His eyes widened a little as he stared at the spot. "So how do we get me back?"

She took a deep breath, "well, that's the problem." She told him, "we need to figure out how you got here, but if we can't... I guess we can call Zatanna."

"You think she can pop me back in time?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"She's our best bet other than the fortress since Clark destroyed the ring," she told him then paused, "although I'm fairly sure Bruce and J'onn were working on a replacement..."

He rubbed a hand over his face. "Who's Bruce?"

Chloe paused and arched her eyebrows at that, then smirked a little, "you'll meet him soon enough."

He glanced at her, raising his eyebrows. "That sounds ominous."

"He's one of the good guys," she promised, but didn't say anything else.

Oliver sighed softly. "So Zatanna or the Fortress." He wasn't terribly fond of magic, but he was even less fond of alien technology. "Magic it is."

"That's what I thought," she told him, picking up one of the phones from her desk, "I'll give her a call."

He nodded and leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes. With any luck, he'd be home soon.

And then he could find _his_ Chloe. 

* * * 

Zatanna appeared less than an hour later, flashing Chloe a smile. "Hey. How's he doing?"

"Hey," Chloe greeted and smirked a little, "which he? But I guess it doesn't matter since freaked out should answer for both."

She smirked back. "I actually meant our Ollie, but the other Ollie is ours, too. He's just in the wrong time zone."

"Time period," Chloe smirked, "He's okay, getting some rest despite his best efforts not to fall asleep." 

"And when was the last time that _you_ slept?" She arched an eyebrow.

"I'll get to it," Chloe told her, arching an eyebrow back. "Now we need to make sure the younger Ollie gets home."

Zatanna sighed softly and nodded. "How weird is it having two of them around?" she asked.

"Not as weird as I thought it would have been if I had considered that before?" She admitted then shrugged slightly, "I just feel so bad for him, knowing everything he's been going through."

She smiled a little. "He'll be all right, though. Everything turned out just fine."

"Yeah, well, let's hope the past version of yourself is there to nudge them in the right direction." She grinned softly. 

Zatanna's grin brightened. "Oh, she will be. She's a fan." She winked at Chloe.

Chloe smiled and shook her head, "lucky us," she nodded toward the elevator, "he's downstairs."

She linked her arm with Chloe's, leading her to the elevator. "So this Oliver hasn't come out of the superhero closet in his timeline?"

"Not yet," Chloe told her, arching her eyebrows, "he was just about to do it when he showed up here and if you ask me, that's no coincidence."

"Probably not," Zatanna agreed, pressing the down button and cocking her head to the side.

"Also," Chloe took a deep breath, "I told him where to find her." 

She glanced at the other woman, raising her eyebrows. "You did?"

"Yeah..." Chloe nodded slightly, "he's been through enough."

"And you're not worried about what that might change?" Zatanna asked quietly.

"Yeah..." she admitted, watching Zatanna for a moment, "but I can't let them go through all of that. Especially everything Ollie went through."

They stepped onto the elevator together and she nodded slightly. "I understand."

"Do you think you'll be able to send him back?" She asked, arching her eyebrows a little.

"Yeah. Shouldn't be too difficult." She nodded.

"And to the right time?" Chloe asked, arching her eyebrows.

Zatanna winked at her. "I can handle it."

"Alright," Chloe smiled softly as they stepped out of the elevator, "Ollie?"

He rose to his feet from where he'd been sitting on the small sofa. "Hey." He glanced at Zatanna and raised his eyebrows. "You're not planning to chain me to any poles, are you?" He smirked a little.

She smirked back at him. "I think I'll leave that to Chloe."

Chloe arched her eyebrows at the exchange, "yeah well, let's get you back to your time so _your_ Chloe can take care of that for you."

He grinned at her involuntarily. "Good idea."

She couldn't stop herself from grinning too and shook her head, "let me get you the exact date and time." She told Zee.

Oliver's grin brightened when he saw Chloe grinning, and he ducked his head a little.

Zatanna glanced between them, smirking. "Are you sure you want him to leave so soon?" she teased.

Chloe arched her eyebrows then gave him a look, "I think one of him is enough for me to handle."

"Ouch," he commented, reaching up to rub the back of his neck.

"Besides, I wouldn't want her to not have you there," she went on, smirking at him.

He shook his head a little, then glanced at Zatanna. "You really think you can get me back?"

She smiled. "I think I can."

"Okay," Chloe turned to the computer and pulled up the folder with the scans of the newspapers that announced her husband coming out of the superhero closet. "The date you want is October 15, 2010. Around 7 PM." She remembered the time herself, she'd been watching it live both from the TV and from the security cameras in Ollie's office.

"I remember it was October," Zatanna said with a nod.

"Before you do it," she held her breath, looking from Zatanna to Oliver, "the Suicide Squad headquarters are under Belle Reve, the entrance is north of the facility, under a small security booth. You will need to be incredibly careful and do _not_ wear green."

Oliver met her eyes and held her gaze. "So I just walk in wearing a suit and tie?"

She sighed and gave him a look, "I know it's really hard for you to understand the concept of low key," she said knowingly, "but try. All black, cover your hair but not your face so it's not too suspicious but enough for you to blend in and _keep your head down_."

A smile quirked at his lips at her look. She knew him better than anyone. "All black, head down. Check."

She smirked slightly at that and nodded, then grew serious once more, "and there is something Ollie and I agreed you should know."

His eyebrows furrowed a little at that. "What?"

"On our anniversary," she said quietly, "in February. If I get kidnapped, no matter what happens, don't go after the guy who did it. Just go find me or just stay in the Watchtower, but _don't_ go after him." Desaad infecting her husband had been far too close a call for her taste.

Oliver frowned. "You got kidnapped?" He took a step toward her, reaching out and laying a hand on her shoulder without thinking about it.

"I'm fine and I was fine," she said firmly, lifting her hand to cover his, "but you need to stay safe. And I don't know if this will happen at all, but this is important, Oliver."

He swallowed hard at the seriousness in her voice and he nodded slightly, hesitating a second and then hugging her. "Thank you," he murmured.

She wrapped her arms tightly around him and closed her eyes, "you'll be okay," she promised quietly, "both of you."

"I won't mess this up," he whispered.

"I know you won't," she cupped his cheek then turned her head and kissed his temple, "I trust you."

Oliver shut his eyes and drew in a breath, nodding a little. "Let's do this."

She nodded slightly and reluctantly pulled away, looking up at him as she took at step back then nodding at Zatanna. She felt responsible for him, like it was her job to take care of him and make sure he got home to her other self okay, but she meant what she said, she trusted him. Completely.

Zatanna nodded, as well, and drew in a deep breath, chanting a few words softly.

And then he vanished.


	4. Chapter 4

Chloe was in her office, at the very bottom floor of the Suicide Squad Headquarters when she heard the alarm going off and commotion outside, she'd been watching the news all day, since she heard about Oliver's last minute press conference and less than an hour ago, she had heard the announcement about it being called off. She had turned immediately to the feed of his office, but the only thing she had managed to see was him leaving it.

So far, she hadn't been able to find anything and it looked like she wasn't going to be doing anymore search anytime soon. She took a deep breath and picked up her leather jacket, picking it up then reaching for her gun and rushing down the hallway. "What happened?" She asked one of the men.

"We have an intruder on the fifth floor." He told her as then both ran up the stairs.

"Fifth?" She echoed, her eyes widened, that was just one floor above where they were, the sixth and most well secured floor of all, but for someone to get to all the way down to the fifth, they had to be good. As well as pretty damn determined and _stupid_. "How many are there?"

"Just one." The man told her, turning to look at her.

Her eyes widened slightly. Really _damn_ good. "Lead the way." She ordered.

He led her down the hallway and toward the stairwell, avoiding the elevator, pulling his own gun out and releasing the safety as they moved up the stairs quickly, just as the landing door flew open.

The two of them nearly bumped right into the man who was making his way into the stairs and Chloe stilled, gun trained at the man for just a second before she realized who the intruder was and all air left her lungs.

"Take him down!" Another voice shouted from the fifth floor.

"NO!" Chloe yelled so loudly, her throat felt raw, "hold your fire! Lower your weapons. _Now!_ " She ordered firmly.

The man with her looked at her looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "He broke in!" He reminded her, leveling his weapon at the other man's head.

In one swift move, Oliver grabbed the man's wrist, disarming him and yanking his other arm behind his back even as he pocketed the weapon. "Thanks for that."

Chloe threw her body against the man at the same time, pushing him against the wall then turned to Oliver, "get downstairs, last room to the right." She said hurriedly as she heard more people approaching.

He met her eyes for one brief second, pulling his hoodie back up over his head, gaze intense as he gave her one short nod, then headed down the stairs as directed, heart beating quickly in his chest.

She held her breath and watched him for a moment then pushed herself away from the guard just in time to see Rick Flagg along with five others making his way into the stairway, "he's with me, back off." She told him, arching an eyebrow.

Flagg arched an eyebrow. "And yet he felt the need to break in? You have some explaining to do, Sullivan."

Chloe arched her eyebrows at that and smirked, "no, I don't. And you damn well know it." She told him, "call off your dogs or we will have a problem." She told him, glad that he hadn't realized _who_ had just broken into the building. Without giving him time to answer, she turned around and started back downstairs as quickly as possible without running.

His jaw tightened at her command, but he reluctantly held one hand up to stop the guards from following her.

She relaxed slightly when she didn't hear footsteps behind her and made her way down the hallway quickly, her heart racing, her eyes wide. She had no idea how Oliver had managed to find her, let alone make his way inside by himself. But she wasn't going to waste time in finding out. She pushed the door open all the way, turning the safety back on her gun and stilling when her eyes fell on him.

Oliver was leaned back against the far wall in the room, hood off once more, eyes locking on her instantly as she stepped inside. His chest tightened painfully and he swallowed hard, unable to look away.

Chloe stared at him for a full moment then turned around, closing the door and locking it before turning to look at him again. "How did you find me?" She asked.

"Believe it or not, you told me where you were." He remained where he was, despite his desire to close the space between them and kiss her. To put his arms around her and hold onto her tightly.

She was holding herself back from doing the same thing and just stared at him, shaking her head slightly, "what are you talking about?"

He drew in a breath, taking a hesitant step toward her. "Something happened. I don't know how exactly, but..." He shook his head. "One minute I was about to hold a press conference at my office and then I was...somewhere else."

She took a step forward too, her heart beating fast, "where?"

"The future," he whispered, searching her eyes.

Chloe stilled and stared at him, blinking a couple of times, "the future? What did you see?"

"You," he murmured. "I saw you."

Her expression softened at that and she cocked her head slightly, looking at him, "what about you?"

He hesitated a moment, then shook his head a little. "Just briefly," he said, not wanting to get into it. He moved closer to her, reaching out and cupping her cheek in his hand. "Future you...told me where you were right now. Told me to come for you."

Chloe's stomach turned slightly and she shook her head, "why?"

"Because you--she--didn't want us to waste any time apart," he murmured.

She pursed her lips together and shook her head a little, "she put you in danger. If I hadn't found you..."

"You did find me," he reminded her.

"I wanted to make sure you were safe," she whispered, searching his eyes.

Pain flickered through his eyes. "Have _you_ been safe?"

"Yes," she told him, stepping closer and lifting a hand to his stomach, unable to stop herself.

He let out a shuddering breath, shifting closer to her, as well, and wrapping his arms around her tightly. "God, I've missed you," he whispered.

She wrapped an arm around him too and held her breath, swallowing hard as she lifted her other hand to touch his face, "I missed you too," she whispered back.

Oliver shut his eyes, leaning into her touch instinctively and then turning his head to kiss the palm of her hand.

Chloe let out her breath and tiptoed, pressing her lips to the corner of his mouth.

He turned his head and captured her mouth with his own, tightening his hold on her just a little.

She slid her hand to the back of his neck and pulled him to her as much as she could, kissing him hard.

Groaning softly, he shifted, leaning down and lifting her into his arms, pressing her back up against the door, relief and need washing over him at the same time. "Chloe," he whispered.

Her eyes teared up slightly and she pulled back enough to look at him, "I can't believe you're here."

He rested his forehead against hers, trying to catch his breath. "Is that a good 'I can't believe you're here' or a bad one?" His voice grew quieter.

"It won't be easy to make Flagg back away from you," she admitted, "but it's so good to see you."

Oliver relaxed a little, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. "I don't care about Flagg."

"I care about your safety," she said quietly, kissing his jaw.

"I can deal with him," he murmured, dropping his mouth to kiss her neck.

"No, but I can," she told him, wrapping her arms around him as she shivered slightly.

"We can together." He pulled her closer to him, looking up at her, his eyes intense.

"We will deal with that later," she said quietly, holding his gaze before kissing him again.

"Deal," he whispered, carrying her over to the bed by the far wall.

Chloe wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his back, keeping her eyes on his face even as he laid down on top of her.

Oliver gazed down at her for a long moment, searching her eyes, her face. "You've really been all right?"

"I'm okay, Ollie," she said quietly, "and I am _so_ sorry."

He exhaled slowly, shutting his eyes and shifting, lying down on his side facing her and resting his head against her collarbone.

She kept her arm around him and leaned her head against his, her chest tightening, this time with fear. Even though he was there, even though he had come for her, she knew how much she had hurt him.

He kissed her collarbone softly. "I know."

Chloe closed her eyes and tightened her hold on him, unsure if that meant he accepted her apology or not.

"I love you," he whispered.

She let out a shaky breath and opened her eyes, turning her head toward him, "I love you too."

He buried his face against her neck, exhaling slowly and kissing her there again before lifting his head to look at her.

Chloe shivered slightly and took a deep breath as she turned to look at him again, turning more on her side toward him and reaching to touch his cheek once more as she searched his eyes.

"Are we safe here?" he asked softly.

"Yes," she said quietly, turning her head and kissing him softly, "no one will come in here."

He relaxed into the mattress, returning the soft kiss and lifting his hand to her hair, tangling his fingers in the blond strands.

Chloe shifted closer to him and took a deep breath as she broke the kiss a moment later, "shift this way," she whispered, "the bed is small."

Oliver shifted closer to her, pulling her up against him and meeting her eyes once again, his fingers tracing over her face lightly, as if he was trying to memorize every detail.

She held his gaze and searched his eyes, wrapping a leg around him too. "Are you okay?"

"Better now," he told her, sliding his hand down to rest on her hip, thumb moving over it gently.

Relaxing slightly, she nodded at him and tried for a smile, "me too." She whispered.

At her failed smile, he swallowed hard. "Really?"

Her face fell and her eyes teared up slightly, "I didn't want to be away from you."

He held his breath, lifting his hand to her cheek once more. "I thought..."

She stilled and her eyes widened a little, "what?" she whispered very quietly.

"That maybe you were staying away because it was too dangerous. That being around me was too dangerous," he admitted in a whisper.

Chloe stared at him for a moment and shook her head, "no," she said quietly, frowning, "of course not, Oliver. How could I?"

"Because it _is_ dangerous," he said softly, his own eyes watery.

"I know," she touched his cheek, "but it's my life too. It has been for a long time."

He closed his eyes, leaning into her touch. "I didn't think I was going to see you again."

"The last thing I wanted was to be away from you," she told him quietly, "but I had to."

"Why?" he whispered. "What's going on? Why are you with these people?"

"They are members of the Suicide Squad," she whispered, "they are the people who had you."

"Yeah, I realized that much when I saw Flagg," he told her.

"I'm in charge," she said quietly.

Oliver was silent for a moment, staring at her. "You're in charge?"

"I blackmailed Flagg, after he let you go." Chloe told him quietly, shifting slightly to look better at him, "we will need to team up with them, but I don't trust them. Having control over them was the only way to do it."

He watched her for a moment, holding his breath once more.

"They will help us fight the government when they turn against vigilantes," she said, "I had to to stay here, I had to make sure they were working on it and I had to make sure we would be ready to help you when the team needed the help."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Why would the government turn against vigilantes?"

"I don't know," she admitted, taking a deep breath and rubbing her hand over her temple, "the images weren't clear."

His heart began to beat a little faster. "The images. From Fate's helmet?" He sat up slowly.

"Yes," she frowned, sitting up too, "why?"

"Were they after me?"

"Yes," she answered again, watching him, "which is why I needed this to work."

"Shit," he whispered, rubbing his hand over his face and rising to his feet, beginning to pace the length of the small room.

"Oliver," she said, pushing herself up off the bed, "what's going on?"

He raked a hand through his hair and turned to look at her. "The press conference."

"What about it?" She asked, "what was it about, why did you call it off?"

"That was when I vanished," he told her, shaking his head. "I was going to tell them everything."

"Everything?" she asked, her eyes widening, "about Green Arrow?"

His chest tight, he nodded slightly.

"Oh," she breathed, watching him closely, " _why_?"

"I thought maybe...if there wasn't all this pressure on you to keep all these huge secrets..." He rubbed a hand over his face. "Apparently all it did was backfire. Or it would have."

"Oh, Ollie..." she shook her head, stepping closer to him, "your secret isn't a burden to me, it has never been."

Oliver's chest tightened a little more at that. "Really?" he whispered.

"Yes," she said searching his eyes, "knowing your secret helped me become a part of the team, become Watchtower. That is such a huge part of who I am now and I wouldn't have it any other way." She paused, "most of all, it brought me closer to _you_."

"And forced you to stay away," he whispered. "Even if you didn't want to."

"I thought I was protecting you," she said quietly.

"I know." He looked down at the floor for a moment.

Chloe stepped closer again, "I'm glad that whatever this was stopped you from going public," she admitted, "it would have put you in so much more danger and... because of me."

"No." He shook his head and moved closer to her, as well. "It would have been because of me. Because of selfishness, Chloe."

"No." She echoed, "you were doing what you thought was best, Oliver. I should have warned you."

"How could you have?" he asked quietly.

"I could have found a way," she breathed, "I thought the letter would have been enough..."

He shut his eyes for a moment. "I accused Tess of writing it," he whispered. "At least, at first. Then I found the other things. The picture. The vial."

She nodded slightly, "I wanted them to lead you to her, I knew she could give you some answers at least. She was the one who brought me back."

Oliver looked up. "Brought you back?" he echoed, eyes widening a little.

"The cyanide pill," she breathed, "I took it, she knew I was going to, so she found me and gave me the antidote."

"Jesus," he whispered, moving to sit down on the edge of the bed and resting his elbows on his knees, staring down at the floor.

Chloe blinked and frowned, shaking her head as she reluctantly took a step closer, "I thought you knew, I'm sorry."

"No, I did, I just..." He shook his head a little, not looking up.

She placed a hand on his back and rubbed it gently but remained silent as she gave him time.

"Knowing it and hearing it..." He swallowed hard. "You could have died."

"I trusted her," she whispered, brushing her fingers over his hair.

"I didn't." He looked up at her finally, his eyes red-rimmed.

Her chest clenched when she saw the tears in his eyes. Without thinking about it, she moved to stand in front of him then crawled on his lap, straddling it. "I'm here. I'm okay." She promised, cupping his face in both her hands, "and I am so sorry for everything I have put you through."

Oliver let out a shuddering breath, wrapping his arms around her tightly as he nodded, burying his face in her hair. "It's okay," he whispered.

She wrapped her arms around him too and pressed her lips to his temple, closing her eyes, "as long as you're safe."

"We," he corrected her. "As long as _we're_ safe, Chloe. Both of us. Together."

Chloe nodded slightly, closing her eyes too and rubbing her hand over his back, doing her best to soothe him, "we'll be okay."

"Promise," he murmured, tightening his arms around her.

She tightened her arms around him at that too, "I will do everything I can." She whispered.

He supposed that would have to do for the time being.


	5. Chapter 5

Oliver gazed at her silently as she slept in his arms, her head resting on his chest, face tilted toward him. God, he’d missed her. Her touch, her voice. His chest tightened as he recalled the last several weeks. The long nights where he’d been unable to sleep, too worried about where she was and if she was okay. He knew she was strong--hell, she was the strongest person he knew. 

But it didn’t stop him from being afraid. 

He didn’t know much about the Suicide Squad--only what Tess had been able to tell him, but the fact that Chloe had actually managed to blackmail the leader and take over amazed him. _She_ amazed him. She always had. 

Now he just had to make sure he thoroughly convinced her that they were better off together than separate. And while he’d spent the majority of the night trying to do just that (in more ways than one), he still wasn’t sure he’d been successful. 

Chloe stirred slightly and took a deep breath. She felt relaxed, rested, like she hadn’t in a very long time. Even before he had disappeared, with Zod around and after Ollie got hurt, she had been so worried that somehow he would find him again and that this time, Zod would do more than just burn his chest. 

But now that they were passed that, he had somehow managed to come back from the future and find her and now that she knew he was safe, she had been able to really rest. She did feel eyes on her as she started to wake up and she knew instantly it was him. Opening her eyes, she smiled slightly and tightened her arm around him instinctively, “hey.” 

“Hey,” he said softly, tracing light, nonsensical patterns on her back. 

She shivered slightly and shifted a little closer to him, “have you been awake for a while?” 

“Awhile,” he echoed with a nod. 

“How are you?” She whispered, lifting a hand to touch his cheek. 

“I’m okay.” He leaned into her touch, trailing his hand down to rest at the small of her back. “Are you?”

Chloe nodded slightly, kissing his jaw softly, “yeah,” she whispered. “Now I am.” ‘

“I missed this,” he murmured, closing his eyes as she kissed him. 

“Me too,” she whispered, kissing the corner of his mouth, “I dreamt about it.” 

“I’m afraid this will turn out to be just a dream.” He exhaled slowly, kissing her mouth softly. 

“I was too,” she whispered, “but now it feels too real.” 

Oliver reached up and gently brushed some hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear. “You sleep okay?” 

“Yeah,” she whispered, looking at him again, “did you?” 

He smiled a bit and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “What do we do now?” 

“Well,” she stretched a little, “I need to go check on Flagg and get us some food,” she told him, “and you need to stay here.” 

He tensed a little, his chest tightening immediately. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” 

“Yeah,” she promised, kissing his cheek when she felt his jaw tense, “I can deal with him.” 

Oliver shut his eyes for a moment, then reached down beneath the mattress of her bed, pulling out the gun he’d taken from one of the guards. “Just in case,” he said quietly. 

She smiled softly and closed his fingers around it, “you keep it,” she whispered, “I have my own.” 

He gazed at her for a moment, then nodded, kissing her urgently. 

She made a quiet noise and kissed him back just as urgently, shifting closer.

He tucked the gun back beneath the mattress, then slid his hand up and into her hair, tangling his fingers in it before ending the kiss abruptly. He raised his eyebrows a little. “Just some incentive to come back quickly,” he informed her, a smirk tugging at his mouth. 

Chloe took a deep breath and stared at him, “not like I needed any,” she pointed out, “that was just mean.” She smirked back before getting up and starting to gather her clothes. Showers could wait, she wanted to take her time with him in the shower anyway. 

He couldn’t help but grin, leaning back against the pillows, his eyes following her as she searched for her clothes. 

She pulled her underwear and pants on, but when she couldn’t find her top, she picked up her leather jacket and pulled it on then zipped up all the way before turning to face him, “and that’s your incentive for staying right here.” 

He groaned. “And I’m mean?” he grumbled. 

Chloe grinned brightly and picked up her gun from one of the desks before turning to the door, “stay here.” 

“Not going anywhere,” he assured her, holding his hands up. 

She nodded slightly and looked at him for a moment longer before making her way out of the room and closing the door behind herself. 

Oliver climbed out of the bed, quickly gathering his clothes and getting dressed, tucking the gun in the waistband of his jeans. He’d wait there unless he heard trouble. And if he did, there was going to be hell to pay. 

* * * 

Chloe made her way back a few minutes later, carrying a couple of lasagnas that had be frozen and a couple of sodas. Hardly Ollie’s choice of food and she knew it, the guy never ate anything from a box unless it was cereal, but it was all they had there. 

She paused and stilled when she saw him standing right by the door and dressed, frowning, she stared at him for a full moment, “what are you doing?”

He relaxed as soon as he saw her. “Just wanted to be ready in case you needed me,” he admitted quietly. 

“Oh,” she relaxed too and her face softened, “everything is fine.”

“And Flagg?” He watched her closely, searching her eyes.

“Not happy,” she told him, setting everything on a side desk, “but he will deal, I told him we won’t be here much longer, but that I will keep an eye on him.” 

“Does he know who’s here with you?” He didn’t even glance at the food.

“Yes,” she told him, turning toward him once more, “and he’s staying away from you.” 

“When we leave here, is he going to stay away from _you_?” he questioned, raising his eyebrows. 

“Well I don’t plan on leaving _him_ alone anytime soon,” she pointed out, “the Suicide Squad has a lot of information on all of us, Ollie. And others.” 

“What are you saying?” Dread knotted his stomach as he shook his head. 

“That we need to keep our enemies closer.” She said simply, holding his gaze. 

“Are you staying here?” He swallowed hard. 

“No,” she frowned, shaking her head a little, “but I might need to come back.”

“But not alone.” He gazed at her intently. “Right?” 

Her face softened at that and she pursed her lips together, “we don’t know where you will be needed, or where I will be needed.”

His chest tightened and he rubbed his hands over his face, turning away from her and moving to sit on the bed silently. 

“Oliver,” she sighed softly, taking a step toward him, “you know that’s how our lives are.”

“It doesn’t mean I have to like it.” He leaned his elbows on his knees, not looking up at her.

“I don’t like it either.” She told him, keeping her eyes on him, “but we have always known that work comes first, that hasn’t changed.”

“Maybe it should.” His voice was quiet. 

“It can’t.” Chloe whispered, her voice tight.

Oliver looked up at her silently, chest tight.

“Don’t do this,” she whispered, searching his eyes, her own chest tight. 

“We don’t know how much time we might have,” he said quietly. 

She stilled and stared at him for a moment, her eyes widening slightly as her stomach turned, “what are you talking about?”

“That what we do is dangerous. Anything could happen at any time. I just...I don’t want us to put everything ahead of us, Chloe,” he whispered, shaking his head. She didn’t need to know about the airplane crash that had nearly killed his future self. 

“Why are you saying this?” She whispered, stepping toward him, “what happened?” She hadn’t missed the fact that he hadn’t mentioned his future self at all. 

He rose to his feet once more. “Everything’s fine,” he said quietly. 

“Doesn’t sound like it.” Chloe told him, her chest getting tighter and tighter.

“There was an accident. But everything turned out okay.” 

“What kind of an accident?” She asked, taking another step toward him.

He sighed softly. “A plane crash.” He’d never been able to keep things from her.

“A plane crash?” She whispered, her eyes widening even more, her heart beating fast, “were you in it? Or... future you?”

Oliver pursed his lips, nodding a little. 

“What happened?” She gasped quietly, “was he okay? How do we stop it?”

He looked down for a moment, then back up at her. “Future you thought it was Lex. Apparently the plane crash wasn’t natural.” 

“Lex?” Chloe shook her head, taking a sharp breath, “Lex is dead.” 

“Not so much, apparently. I didn’t really get all the details,” he admitted. “We were kind of busy trying to locate...well, other me.” 

“Did she find him?” She asked anxiously.

“J’onn found him,” he said softly. 

“Was he okay? Was he hurt?” Chloe asked, wishing he would just tell her.

“Concussion. He was fine.” He sighed, shaking his head. 

“Oh.” She let out a shaky breath and nodded a little, “well we can make sure to stop it,” she said, watching him closely, “make sure you stay safe.”

Oliver gazed at her for a moment, then shrugged a little. “Yeah.” 

“You don’t seem to care,” she said, trying to understand what was going on in his mind and wishing she didn’t feel so completely disconnected from him right then. It scared her. 

“We’ve already changed things from the way things were there,” he said. 

“But if Lex is alive, and if he was going after other you, he will be going after you here too, Oliver,” she told him urgently.

“I know,” he admitted. “I considered that already.” 

“We have the upper hand,” she told him, “we need to act instead of reacting, we need precautions and we need to keep you safe.”

“Chloe.” He shook his head a little, stepping closer to her. “It could be years before he’d try to get back at me. It could be tomorrow. I’m not sure how much we can actually do.” He wasn’t even sure how the hell Lex had managed to survive at all. 

“We can find him first,” she said firmly, holding his gaze, “we can keep watch, we can stop him before he even _tries_.”

He reached up, cupping her cheek in his hand and tilting her head back just a little before dipping his head to kiss her softly on the mouth. 

Chloe held her breath and kissed him back, closing her eyes as she lifted her hands to his arms.

“I love you,” he murmured against her lips. 

She kept her eyes closed and brushed her nose against his, holding on to his upper arms tightly, “I love you.” She murmured back to him.

“Promise me you’ll never forget that. No matter what.” 

Her chest tightened and she pulled back slightly, just enough to look at him, “I won’t,” She whispered.

He nodded a little, brushing his thumb lightly over her cheek and then leaning his forehead against hers as he shut his eyes.

“What are you thinking?” She asked quietly, she had been trying to figure that out since the beginning of this conversation and still hadn’t been able to, which was unusual for them.

“They were married,” he said softly. 

Chloe stilled at that and blinked a couple, pulling her head back, “they?” She asked, holding her breath.

“Future us,” he whispered. 

Her stomach tightened, “how long into the future did you go?”

“A couple of years,” he told her, looking down at the floor for a moment, then back up at her. 

“Oh...” she pulled away from him and looked away as she tried to process that information.

He exhaled slowly when she pulled away from him. “Like I said, me showing up here already changed things.” He looked away, too.

Her stomach turned and she pursed her lips together, nodding slightly, “right.” She whispered.

His face fell at her response, his stomach dropping. “Right.” He moved over to the table, his expression blank as he looked down at the food she’d brought. 

She watched him, her chest tight as she swallowed hard. Chloe sighed softly and pulled her shoes off, “I’m gonna go take a shower,” she said quietly, making her way to the bathroom that was connected to her room.

He turned, watching her go with a pained expression. He shut his eyes and sank down onto the edge of the bed, then flopped backwards, staring up at the ceiling. 

_Great_.


	6. Chapter 6

Chloe had arranged everything for the following day so they could leave the facility, things with Oliver were... stilted at best. She didn't know what to say or do, she didn't know what else he had seen in the future he wasn't telling her, but she was sure there was more. She also had no idea what he was _expecting_ from her, but she was afraid to ask, because she knew what she couldn't give him.

She was also terrified of losing him.

But for the time being, she was trying to focus on getting them out, getting them back to the Watchtower because after his stunt with the press, she knew they would be trying to find him for an explanation. The drive to the heart of Metropolis had been quiet and she was more than glad to see it was over as she pulled the black SUV into the back alley. They had waited until late at night on purpose.

"Do you think Tess is upstairs?" She asked, knowing that the woman had started helping the team since she left.

"I don't know," he said honestly, glancing at her sideways. "Probably not. She's usually gone by nine or so."

Nodding slightly, she took a deep breath and picked up the small bag from the back seat, "let's go." She said quietly, getting out of the car without looking at him.

He slid out of the passenger seat and shut the door quietly, joining her at the back of the vehicle and reaching down, taking the bag from her. "She's changed some things," he murmured.

She held her breath and glanced at him, "it's not mine."

"It's always been yours."

Chloe pressed the code to the back door pad then her thumb so it would take her fingerprint, "I knew I was giving it up when I left."

The words sent a cold chill through his bones and he stared blankly at the keypad, watching as it lit up and turned green. "Right," he whispered.

She stepped in in front of him and took a deep breath, wondering how exactly they went from two nights ago to now, wondering what exactly had happened. Her chest was so tight, it hurt even more as she remembered the conversations she'd had with Tess. Both the one there at the Watchtower months before, and the one the night she asked Tess to return the favor and bring her back to life like she had done for the red head. They had both been about him and they had been so different and so similar at the same time.

He followed her inside the building quietly, feeling the weight of everything that had happened and realizing how tired he was. She was different now, and while it wasn't necessarily a bad thing, his chest ached from the realization that she may very well have moved on. Sure, she said she loved him, and he loved her more than anything or anyone he'd ever loved, but he couldn't help feeling a sense of foreboding, and he wondered if they had already changed too much. Wondered if the future the other Oliver and Chloe had together would ever be theirs.

Chloe remained quiet as they made their way into the elevator, leaning back against the wall as it took them to the top floor, doing her best not to wrap her arms around herself to try and shield herself from this, whatever it was, and how much it hurt. Instead, she was doing her best to focus on what was really the most important thing to her: his safety. "Does Clark know?" She asked quietly as they reached the top floor.

"About what?" he asked uncertainly, glancing at her sideways, eyebrows furrowing. He wasn't sure if she meant if the younger man knew he'd been about to spill his guts to the entire world about him being Green Arrow, or about his unplanned trip to the future, or that he'd located Chloe.

"About you coming to find me," she asked, pushing herself off the wall and toward the elevator doors as they slid open, "and everything you found out."

"No, I haven't talked to Clark," he told her, following her off the elevator.

"We need to," she said firmly, pulling the double doors open without hesitation, "he needs to start looking for Lex."

 _"Chloe?"_ Clark's eyes widened and he spun around at the sound of her voice.

Chloe stilled and held her breath when she saw him standing there, just because she wanted to talk to him about Lex, it didn't mean she was ready to do it _then_. "Hi, I didn't know you were here."

He stared at her with wide eyes. "I didn't know _you_ were, either."

"I haven't been," she breathed, glancing over at Oliver, "it's a long story. But we did need to talk to you."

"Chloe, where have you _been_?" Clark shook his head, moving toward her slowly.

"Doing my best to keep everyone safe." She told him, "but that isn't important right now."

Clark looked at Oliver uncertainly, then back at Chloe, frowning. "Of course it is. What do you mean keeping everyone safe? Keeping us safe from what?"

Oliver sighed inwardly, rubbing a hand over his face and heading toward the kitchen. "I'm gonna start some coffee."

Chloe sighed softly and shook her head, "listen to me," she told Clark, taking a step toward him, "I know I have a lot to explain but we have reason to believe that Lex is out there. Alive. And we need to find him, before he finds us."

Clark blinked, staring at her again. "Lex? How is that even possible, Chloe? I saw what was left of the van when Oliver blew him up."

"I don't know," she admitted, "and I don't have any proof for you, Clark, but we need to find out what is happening."

He was silent for a moment. "I'll keep my eyes open," he told her, still looking uncertain.

"Thank you," she breathed, glancing toward the kitchen then back at Clark, "the two of you will be his biggest targets."

"Lex has always been obsessed with me," he murmured in agreement.

"And I have no doubt that he will come after Oliver," she stressed, "possibly even before he comes after you." 

Clark looked at her skeptically, frown deepening. "Maybe," he responded, glancing at her and then toward the kitchen. "Well, I'm sure you two have a lot to catch up on, so I'll see you later?"

She let out her breath and nodded, "yeah, I'll see you later." 

Nodding, he sped away, vanishing.

Chloe rubbed her hands over her face tiredly and shook her head slightly.

Oliver stood in the kitchen, sipping on a cup of coffee that was almost too hot to drink. When he turned and saw that Clark had left, he drew in a breath and headed out to where Chloe remained, holding out a cup of coffee to her wordlessly.

She looked over at him when she felt his presence, holding her breath when she saw the offered mug and taking it carefully, "thank you."

"Do you still take it the same?" he asked very softly. "That's how I fixed it."

"I do," she nodded slightly, "thank you." She repeated, sipping on the hot liquid.

He nodded a little as well, gulping down a big drink of his own coffee.

"You started drinking coffee," she said quietly, watching him closely.

Oliver paused at that, meeting her eyes. "It made me feel closer to you," he confessed, voice barely audible.

She held her breath and looked down, feeling guilty once more, "I'm sorry."

"Don't," he said, shaking his head. "I didn't...I'm not trying to make you feel guilty, Chloe. I mean, you were doing what you had to do."

"I know," she said quietly, not believing for a second that he would try to make her feel guilty. "I still didn't want to put you through that." 

Oliver was silent for a moment. "I didn't think you were coming back," he said softly, taking another drink and then slowly moving over to sit on the couch. It was one of the few things that Tess hadn't gotten rid of. Because when she'd tried, he'd nearly bitten her head off about it.

"I didn't know if I was, either," she admitted, her stomach turning as she watched him, unable to shake off the memories of the countless nights they spent together on that couch. 

He stared down at the mug in his hands. He knew she would have wound up coming back even if he hadn't gone to find her, because her future self had told him that much. It didn't make her admission sting any less. "Yeah, I...figured that much from the letter."

"That doesn't mean I didn't want to," she said quietly, shaking her head, "the helmet doesn't show anything about the person who wears it. I knew some really big things were going to happen, but I didn't know why or even how involved I would be in them. Mostly, I saw you."

"And the helmet showed that I needed to be alone?"

Her chest tightened at that and she looked away, "it showed me that you would need my protection eventually."

"I'm just trying to understand, Chloe," he whispered.

"I know," she shook her head a little, "I guess I thought I was doing what I needed to." But that hadn't been the right choice. Again.

"What did you see that I needed protection from?" Oliver set his cup of coffee down, looking over at her as he held his breath. "Lex?"

Her eyes teared up a little and she shook her head, "I couldn't make sense of it," she said quietly, "I saw where you were, tied up," her voice tightened, "where they were torturing you."

Oliver's throat tightened when her voice did and without thinking about it, he rose to his feet once more. "I'm so sorry you had to see that. Does it help if I say it wasn't as bad as it probably looked?"

She looked at him and shook her head, "you don't have to lie to me, Oliver."

He was silent for a moment, then slowly crossed the room until he was standing in front of her.

Chloe held her breath and lifted her head slowly, looking up at him.

"I am sorry you had to see it," he whispered, lifting a hand to her cheek.

Her face fell and she shook her head, searching his eyes, "I'm sorry they got you."

"That wasn't your fault," he said softly, holding her gaze.

"I wish I could have found you sooner," she whispered.

"You saved my life," he whispered back, shaking his head a little. "You almost died doing it." This time his voice was strained.

"I saw you later," she said quietly, "through the helmet," she took a deep breath, "you looked happy." And she knew he would be okay then, regardless if he ever saw her again.

"Then that must have been when you came back. When we were together again. Because I'm not happy when you're not here," he whispered, swallowing hard.

Her eyes teared up a little and she swallowed hard, "maybe you would have been," she whispered back, her voice wavering. "You're not happy now."

"Is that what you think?" He stared at her for a moment, shaking his head.

"I asked you not to lie to me." She told him, holding his gaze.

"Oh, Chloe." He exhaled slowly, leaning in and pressing a kiss to her forehead. "I'm not unhappy. I'm just _scared_."

Chloe let her breath out and closed her eyes, leaning into him, "what if we already changed things too much?"

Oliver wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him and shutting his eyes, as well. "I don't know," he admitted.

She hesitated just for a second and wrapped her arms around him too, pulling him closer. "Protecting you is the most important thing right now."

His expression softened at that and his arms tightened around her. "I want to make sure you're protected, too, Chloe. That all of us are," he murmured.

"I meant from Lex, " she whispered, "if... we're having issues, it can't get in the way of that."

"Then let's work out our issues," he said softly, pulling back to look at her and raising his eyebrows.

"How?" She asked. "And what if some of them can't be solved?"

He lifted his hand to her cheek once more. "You don't want to try?"

Chloe sighed softly and stared at him, "of course I do," she whispered, "but I don't want to hurt you anymore."

"Then all you have to do is not vanish on me again," he informed her, searching her eyes.

"I don't want to," she promised, wrapping her fingers around his shirt.

"Then don't," he whispered, shaking his head. "Nothing good will come from it. I know that much."

"You can't do this," she whispered back, "you can't compare us to whatever you saw."

"How can I not?" Oliver gazed at her intently. "When I _know_ how things could have been?"

"Because what if they _aren't_ that way now?" She sighed, looking down, "things are already different and... I don't want you to expect something that may never happen."

His stomach knotted at her words and he dropped his hand from her cheek. "Right," he said blankly. "Got it."

Her chest tightened and she turned to look at him, her eyes big, "no, you didn't."

"It was pretty clear, Chloe." He rubbed a hand over his face.

"What do you think I'm saying, Oliver?" She asked, her chest tight.

"That we don't have a future," he answered.

Chloe held her breath, shaking her head slightly, "I don't know that," she whispered, trying to ignore how much it hurt to just think of that possibility, "and neither do you. What I'm trying to say is that we don't necessarily have _their_ future."

He gazed at her. "I'm not heart-set on _their_ future, Chloe. But that doesn't mean I'm not hoping for _some_ kind of future with you," he whispered back.

She looked down and nodded slightly, "I just don't want you to be disappointed."

He paused for a moment. "What do you think I'm going to be disappointed about?"

"I don't know." She said quietly, "expectations you might have."

He drew in a breath and rested his hands on her shoulders. "Chloe, look at me. Please."

Holding her breath once more, she turned toward him again, holding his gaze.

"I just want to be with you," he whispered, searching her eyes.

She swallowed hard and nodded slightly, staring at him, "that's what I want too."

"Then what are we disagreeing about?" His voice was uncertain.

Chloe stared at him for a moment then sighed deeply, shaking her head, "I don't know."

A small smile touched his mouth. "Maybe we should just both try and relax a little while we can," he suggested.

She sighed softly and nodded, "easier said than done."

He reached out, settling one hand on her hip and shifting closer to her, offering her a teasing smile. "Pretty sure I know one way to help you relax," he murmured, dipping his head and capturing her lips in a kiss.

Chloe kissed him back and relaxed slightly, shifting closer and lifting her hands to his arms.

"See? Working already," he murmured against her lips.

"Yeah, well, not exactly fair..." she breathed, lifting her arms and wrapping them around his neck.

"Completely fair," he responded, lifting her into his arms and kissing her again as he carried her toward the couch.

"Very far from it," she answered against his lips, holding on to him even as he lowered her to the couch.

Oliver smiled as he gazed down at her. "I love you."

Her heart skipped a beat and she nodded a little, "I love you too." 

He brushed his nose against hers, kissing her softly. He fully intended to show her just how _much_.


	7. Chapter 7

As promised, he had managed to get her to relax for the rest of the night. They stayed on the couch most of the night, dozing off and making love. After taking a shower, they decided to get up since it was already almost ten and while Ollie went looking for pancake ingredients, she booted up the computers so she could start researching Lex. Just thinking about it was already making her anxious, but she didn't want to waste anymore time.

Awhile later, Oliver carried out two plates of pancakes to the main room, setting them down before moving up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. He pressed a kiss to the back of her neck, then closed his eyes as he leaned his head against hers. He'd missed this, just the simple act of holding her, of being close to her. "Anything?" he murmured, pressing another kiss to the side of her neck.

She shivered slightly and leaned back against him, shaking her head, "nothing yet, just setting up searches. I think our best bet will be starting with closed experiments, we know he was there at the time of the explosion so if he's back, he must have been at least badly hurt."

"Sounds good," he agreed with a slight nod. "You hungry?"

"Yeah," she breathed, turning her head and kissing his cheek softly, "I missed your pancakes," she admitted, smiling softly. She was feeling a lot more confident now.

He smiled back at her, eyes brightening. "You're the only one I make them for."

"You haven't made any in all this time?" she asked quietly, turning her head more to look at him.

He shook his head, pressing a kiss to her temple. "I haven't."

Chloe lifted her arms to his and squeezed them lightly, "thank you," she whispered.

He smiled softly. "You're welcome. Let's eat before they get cold," he suggested, leading her over to the desk where he'd set the plates.

"Okay," she said quietly, taking his hand even as she reluctantly pulled away from him to take a seat.

He sat down beside her, threading his fingers through hers even as he picked up his fork with his left hand awkwardly.

She watched him for a full moment, smirking a little and leaning in, kissing his cheek and squeezing his hand before letting go of it. "Don't want that fork to end up in your eye."

"It would make things difficult if I only had one eye," he said, returning her smirk with his own.

"Especially the aiming," she pointed out, taking a bite of her pancaked and taking a bite, a smile appearing on her lips instantly. He always made her breakfast, whenever they spent the night together, no matter where they were; there, at the clocktower, or even at the Talon, even if groceries were always very limited at the last one. And the pancakes were always her favorite. Having them again, after such a long time and with him there, felt like coming home.

He watched her as the smile lit up her face, holding his breath for a moment. "I especially missed _that_."

She arched her eyebrows a little and cocked her head to look at him, soft smile still on her lips, "what?"

"That smile," he whispered, warmth in his eyes.

Her face softened and she smiled more, leaning closer to him and kissing him softly.

Oliver returned the kiss, closing his eyes.

Chloe cupped his cheek and kissed him for a moment longer then pulled away just enough to look at him, "I missed all of you."

"Goes without saying," he told her with a grin, winking at her.

"Does it?" She smirked, "and your ego remains intact."

"You wouldn't have it any other way." He grinned and kissed her once more.

"No," she agreed against his lips, kissing him back a little deeper this time.

"You realize that you're giving me other ideas on how to use the syrup," he murmured against her mouth.

"Hm," she said quietly, arching her eyebrows, "sounds sticky..."

"Very," he agreed, smirking.

Chloe watched him for a moment then ran her finger over her plate and then brushed it against his cheek, arching her eyebrows.

His eyes narrowed and darkened at her actions as he leaned in closer to her. "Don't start if you're not willing to finish," he murmured.

"Who said anything about not willing to finish?" She asked, cocking her head and licking the syrup off his cheek slowly.

He groaned softly, pushing his plate away and snaking his arms around her, pulling her onto his lap.

She laughed softly, wrapping her arms around him instantly before kissing him deeply.

"You are a very naughty, bad woman," he informed her as his hands traveled up her back and then began unbuttoning the shirt she was wearing. One of his.

"Didn't seem to bother you before," she asked, running her nails down his bare back as she kissed him hard.

A second later, the doors were pushed open, "Oliver!?"

He jumped, shifting a little and winding his arms around Chloe's waist to keep her from falling off his lap. "Ever heard of knocking?" he demanded without thinking about it.

Chloe instinctively lowered her head and pulled the shirt closed, glad Oliver's hold on her was firm because otherwise she would have fallen back.

Tess' eyes widened as she stood there, staring at them, "not at my workplace that _should_ have been empty," she told him, cocking her head a little then stilling, " _Chloe_?" She gasped, only then recognizing the blonde.

He blew out a breath, pressing a kiss to Chloe's temple. "We'll have to install some kind of warning alarm," he grumbled, carefully getting to his feet and setting her on her feet, as well.

Chloe ran her fingers through her hair and adjusted her shirt, glad she had been cold and was actually wearing pants too, something that rarely happened when Ollie was around.

"I didn't know you were back," Tess admitted.

"It's a recent development," Oliver informed her, keeping Chloe shielded from view until she'd re-buttoned the shirt he'd so diligently unbuttoned seconds before. Then he turned around to look at Tess. "It's early."

"It's nearly eleven," Tess pointed out, smirking and enjoying his discomfort just a little bit.

Chloe patted Oliver's back gently to let him know she was done before stepping to his side, "we just got back last night."

His eyes narrowed at the red head's smirk and he folded his arms across his chest.

"Is there a reason why you're here instead of one of your empty apartments?" She asked, mostly Oliver.

"We were researching," he responded, glowering.

"You definitely seemed busy when I walked in." She nodded, smirking some more.

Chloe frowned slightly at the interaction and cocked her head, watching.

Oliver scowled. "Last _night_ ," he clarified.

"What are you researching?" Tess dared.

"Lex." Chloe answered, only then realizing that there was no reason for her to have to take down all of the LuthorCorp firewalls when the owner of the company was one of them now.

He couldn't help but smirk at the shocked expression on her face. "Apparently he's more like a cockroach than we thought. Just keeps on coming back."

Fear flickered over Tess' face and she stared at them, a little paler than before, "Lex?" She echoed.

Chloe took a deep breath, "we have reason to believe he's alive, we want to find him before he finds any of us."

Oliver raised his eyebrows a little. "Clark's keeping an eye out."

"And an ear out," Chloe nodded, noticing how scared the woman seemed to be all of the sudden. Not that she could blame her, "and you have access to all of LuthorCorp's projects, we need to link the Watchtower with your database."

When Tess didn't respond, Oliver's smirk slipped a little. "What is it?"

"Nothing." Tess' jaw clenched, "I'll link what I can, some of the projects aren't online, I don't know if I have found all of them yet."

"It's a start." Chloe nodded, "thank you, Tess."

He frowned a little, watching her for a moment, then glancing at Chloe sideways and raising his eyebrows. "All right."

Tess nodded and turned to one of the computers as far away from them as she could.

With a deep breath, Chloe glanced over at Oliver and nodded a little.

"What was that?" he murmured, reaching down and taking her hand.

"It's Lex, Ollie," she whispered, holding on to his hand, "you know what he did to her." Or at least Chloe assumed he knew.

He pursed his lips, glancing toward the other woman. "Yeah," he agreed quietly.

Chloe squeezed his hand before letting go, "let's get back to work," she suggested. It wasn't like they had an option anymore.

He sighed softly, nodding in agreement, glancing at Chloe once more. "All right." The sooner they found what they were looking for, the sooner they could get on with their lives.

* * *

They spent hours researching, Tess had left a couple of hours ago to head to LuthorCorp and despite all the coffee, Chloe was feeling her eyes getting heavy, "I'll make more coffee," she whispered to Ollie, stretching as she started toward the kitchen.

He watched her go, then sighed softly, rubbing a hand over his bleary eyes. He wasn't sure if it was all the research or caffeine, but he was developing one hell of a bad headache. "Maybe it's time to toss in the towel for the day."

"I want to be awake when Tess sends the rest of the information," she told him, looking at him over her shoulder. "You can lay down if you want to."

Oliver yawned softly, glancing toward the sofa, then back at her. "No. I'll wait."

"Lay down, Ollie," she said quietly, "I'll be right there."

He hesitated a moment, then reluctantly rose to his feet, moving over to the sofa.

Chloe smiled softly and turned back to the coffee pot, a second later, one of the glasses shattered from the roof and next thing she knew, there was a big box on the floor, inches from her.

He sprang to his feet as soon as he heard glass shatter and in seconds he was across the room and in the kitchen at her side, pulling her away from the box. "What the _hell?_ "

She held onto his arm not to lose balance and stared at it, eyes wide. The lid had lifted off to the side of the box halfway but she still couldn't see inside. "Don't touch it," she whispered, pushing back so they would walk away from it.

Oliver glanced at her sideways and then eyed the box. "It's not ticking. That's a plus."

"They don't necessarily need to tick," She said tightly then took a deep breath, "CLARK!"

He winced, pulling her back farther away from the box, sighing involuntarily when Clark suddenly appeared.

She held her breath but didn't let go of Oliver, "that box was just thrown in here," she told him, "I need you to x-ray it."

Clark looked up toward the shattered glass and then down at the box, frowning deeply. He focused for a moment and then relaxed. He leaned down and pushed aside the lid, revealing the broken green arrow that lay inside, along with a note. He opened the note and paused as he read it, before handing it over to Chloe.

_We have a score to settle. See you soon. LL._

Chloe's stomach dropped instantly and her eyes widened as she read the short note, turning to look at Oliver a moment later. "We're already too late."

Oliver met her eyes. "No, we're not. No one's hurt," he pointed out.

"He found us before we could find him, Oliver," She said, still looking at him then turning to Clark, "did you find anything?"

"No, nothing," he admitted, shaking his head.

"Okay," she nodded, "I will see if I can track this, thank you for coming."

"Sure." Clark nodded as well, then vanished.

Chloe took a deep breath and turned to Oliver, her eyes wide still, "we're leaving."

He blinked at that. "Leaving?" he echoed, cocking his head to the side.

"We can't stay here, _you_ can't stay here. He knows where you are." She said urgently.

"So where do you suggest we go?"

"Somewhere where he won't look," she said, thinking on her feet, "somewhere obvious where we can be hiding in plain sight. Like Star City."

"You want to go to Star City?" Oliver watched her closely as she paced.

"We can't stay, we can go into actual hiding for a few days and then to Star City. That would be the obvious place, wouldn't it? You just can't be seen." She told him, stopping and turning to face him, "we can have Clark or Bart run you to Europe and make sure someone writes about you being there, that will make it safer."

"Only if you're coming with me," he said quietly.

Her expression softened just slightly and she shook her head, "I'm not leaving your side."

A soft smile touched his mouth and he held out one hand to her. "Then I don't care where we go," he said honestly.

She relaxed slightly and nodded, "I'll take fingerprints from the box and try to find where it came from, think of a place where we can go that you won't be seen."

He linked his fingers with hers and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "All right, good deal, Gorgeous."

Chloe squeezed his hand tightly and nodded, holding his gaze, "I'll get started, go lay back down."

"I want to help," he told her, lifting her hand to his mouth and kissing her knuckles.

"You need to find us a place. I wanna be gone as soon as possible." She said, holding her breath, her eyes on his face.

"All right. Then I'll work on that." He kissed her forehead.

She nodded a little and held his gaze for a moment before turning away and going to find gloves so she could pick up the box. Somehow, being away from Metropolis sounded like the safest thing she could do for him. 

He watched her go, holding his breath for a moment, then looking down at the box. Maybe getting away from Metropolis was the best thing they could do.

* * *

"So this is it," he told her, unlocking the door to his parents' mansion early the next morning and holding it open for her.

"Wow," she said, looking around, "not exactly an underground hiding place," she commented. She really had had no idea what to expect when he suggested the mansion, all she knew is that she didn't really see the Queens living in a Luthor-like castle, for some reason.

"Not exactly," he agreed softly. "I haven't been here in a long time, though."

"How does it feel?" She asked, stepping further into the mansion but keeping her eyes on him.

"Weird," Oliver admitted, glancing at her sideways as he shut the door behind them and locked it.

"Bad weird?" She asked, frowning. 

"No, just...different." He offered her a small smile.

"Are you sure?" She frowned more, "because we don't _have_ to stay here, Ollie."

"I know," he assured her, reaching out and resting his hands on her shoulders. "I'm all right."

She held his gaze for a moment then nodded, "as long as you are sure," she said quietly, "Bart said he left the boxes upstairs." 

He nodded a little, shifting closer to her and wrapping his arms around her wordlessly, resting his chin atop her head.

Her face softened and she wrapped her arms around him too, closing her eyes and pulling him to her tightly, "I love you." She whispered. 

He smiled softly at that, hugging her tightly. "I love you, too."

Chloe closed her eyes and turned her head, pressing her lips to his jaw and closing her eyes. She'd been more than a little freaked out since they got the note from Lex and they had spent the rest of the night trying to figure out where the arrow had come from. Oliver had quickly realized that it was one of his old models, from about three years ago and that had helped her relax slightly, but she wouldn't feel like he was any safer until they had a location for Lex and were able to track him 24/7.

"Come on. Let me show you around," he murmured.

She kissed his cheek softly then pulled away slightly, "okay."

Oliver took her by the hand, lacing their fingers together as he led her toward the kitchen. "The fridge and cabinets should be stocked."

Chloe held on to his hand tightly and nodded, "and it should be big enough that the boys can be around without it being a problem."

"And all of the locks on the doors work." He raised his eyebrow, glancing at her sideways. "I thought about having them all alarmed. You know, just in case."

"Yes," she agreed instantly, "let's get that done as quickly as possible," she said seriously. 

Oliver paused. "I meant to keep from being surprised if one of them walks in on us at an...inconvenient time. Like Tess yesterday?"

"...Right," Chloe said, arching her eyebrows, "and I'm sure it will also come in handy if someone, oh, I don't know, decides to try and kill you in your sleep?" She pointed out, arching her eyebrows.

He turned so he was facing her once more. "Chloe." His voice was soft. "We'll take precautions. But I don't think we need to alarm every door in the mansion."

"Not every door," she said quietly, "but in the room we sleep, it's not a bad idea, also on the windows."

"That sounds reasonable," he said just as quietly, reaching up and tucking some hair behind her ear.

"Good," she smiled a little, "much easier when I don't have to go behind your back to install it."

He smirked. "Or put tracking devices in all my clothes?"

"Please," she smirked back at him, "I've been able to track your entire wardrobe for _years_."

He cocked his head to the side.

Chloe squeezed his hand and smirked some more, "you were going to show me around?"

"Right," he responded, narrowing his eyes a little.

"Come on," she said, tugging on his hand, "do you have any ideas where we can have Watchtower here?"

"I've got a few," he admitted with a nod as she followed him.

"Like what?" She asked, arching her eyebrows as they walked.

"Well, there's the panic room, for one," he began, glancing at her sideways.

She paused and arched her eyebrows, "I guess you guys would have needed a panic room."

"I don't think they ever used it. But it might just come in handy now."

"Yeah," Chloe agreed quietly, "maybe we should just stay there..."

"We are _not_ letting Lex Luthor dictate our lives," he informed her firmly, turning so he was facing her.

She held her breath and let it out slowly, nodding slightly, "I know," she sighed, "I know, Ollie. I just need you to be safe."

"And I will be," he promised, searching her eyes.

"And I will make sure of that," she said quietly, holding his gaze, her chest tight.

Oliver leaned down, kissing her softly on the mouth. "Come on. Plenty of stops left on the tour."

She kissed him back and nodded a little, walking with him quietly.

He glanced at her sideways once more. "And really? My _whole_ wardrobe?"


	8. Chapter 8

Oliver slid open the glass doors of the balcony, grinning as he took off his gloves and leaning against the doorframe when he spotted Chloe on the sofa, laptop on her lap, faced away from him. "Miss me?"

Chloe sat up and arched her eyebrows, smirking. He would have scared her if she hadn't been tracking him from said laptop all night, "maybe..." 

"Just _maybe_?" He frowned.

She closed her laptop and grinned, standing up and starting toward him, "well, I don't know. You seemed awfully eager to leave me for patrol..."

"I was more eager to get _back_ ," he informed her, raising his eyebrows a little.

"You sure?" She asked, cocking her head, "it's been a long time..." 

"You're such a tease," he told her, closing the distance between them and tossing his gloves onto the table before wrapping his arms around her waist.

Chloe grinned brightly and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. It was the first patrol he'd been allowed to go on since they had moved to Star City. Tess had been able to track Lex down just two day ago after almost three weeks and she was personally keeping a close eye on him. Of course that didn't stop Chloe from setting up her own 24/7 feed of the lab Lex was currently apparently residing in, but it helped her relax. Knowing where he was and that, from what they could tell, he was currently debilitated was definitely comforting. 

It didn't get rid of the threat, but at least, they were able to have the upper hand once more.

"I think you missed me after all," he murmured against her mouth, sliding his hand up her back and tangling his fingers in her hair.

"I always do," she murmured back at him, shifting closer, "although I have to admit, it will be nice to be able to leave here every now and then." She said as she pulled back a little to look at him.

He brushed his nose against hers, raising his eyebrows a little. "You thinking of somewhere you want to go?"

"Not really," she said quietly, kissing him softly, "but knowing we can is nice?"

Oliver relaxed a little, nodding and leaning his forehead against hers.

"How are you doing?" She asked quietly, brushing her fingers over his neck.

"I'm fine," he said honestly, kissing her nose. "Are you?"

"Yes," she smiled, "much better." 

He smiled back at her, his eyes bright. "Good," he whispered.

Chloe smiled a little more and kissed him again, deeply and for a long moment before pulling back slowly, "now we need to find a new normal to get back to."

He couldn't help but smirk. "When have we ever had anything resembling normal lives, Chloe?"

"Normal for _us_ , not regular normal." She pointed out, "although I was promised Thai and a movie a long time ago and I don't believe that was ever delivered..." 

His eyes widened just a little. "I don't know, I almost think that's too _tame_ of a date for a woman like yourself." His eyes were filled with teasing. "Might have to come up with some way to spice things up a little."

"Maybe," she smirked, brushing her nose against his again, "but we never even tried that before..."

"Then I guess we'll just have to see where things take us," he murmured, kissing the corner of her mouth.

"Just because it's a tame start, doesn't mean it has to stay that way," she agreed, brushing her bottom lip against his.

He grinned against her mouth, capturing her lips with his once more. "I don't think it's going to stay tame tonight, either," he informed her.

"They better not, Arrow," she grinned, "I missed you and the leather."

He smirked. "So I'm not the only one with a green leather fetish these days?" He dipped his head, kissing her neck.

"You haven't been in a _very_ long time," she grinned, cocking her head for him and shivering.

"Always good to hear," he told her, nipping lightly at her skin as his hands found their way beneath her shirt.

She grinned again and leaned into his touch, pausing when she heard someone clearing their throat.

He groaned softly, his jaw tightening as he looked up and saw Zatanna. He glanced at Chloe and raised his eyebrows. "I think we're going to have to have a team meeting about _knocking_ before entering a room."

Chloe pulled away from him and tugged her shirt down looking from Ollie to the woman, she hadn't seen her in quite a while, "Zatanna?" She frowned a little, "what are you doing here?"

Zatanna smirked at them, raising her eyebrows. "I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd drop in and say hello." She held up a bottle of champagne.

Blinking, Chloe arched her eyebrows and glanced to Ollie then took a step closer to take the champagne bottle, "thanks," she said, cocking her head, "I take it you heard about Lex?"

She nodded a little, holding the bottle out to Chloe. "Yeah. Clark filled me in when I stopped by Watchtower."

"Good," she nodded too, smiling softly, "thank you."

"You're welcome." She raised her eyebrows at Oliver. "I won't keep you since you seemed to be... _busy_."

Chloe let her breath out and glanced at Ollie too, pursing her lips.

He smirked at her. "Appreciated, Zee. I'll be sure and return the favor," he informed her, nodding at the bottle in Chloe's hand.

"We'll have a meeting soon with the team to discuss future plans, if you're interested," Chloe offered.

"Definitely. But no rush." She cocked her head to the side, smirking at Oliver and then smiling at Chloe.

"Soon as in next week or so," Chloe smirked a little and lifted the bottle slightly, "thanks again."

Zatanna's smirk brightened. "Sure thing. Enjoy it." She winked at them and disappeared.

"You'd think I'd be used to that by now," Oliver commented.

"Nope," she told him, turning toward him, "never gonna get used to those."

He grinned, raising his eyebrows. "Should I get some glasses?"

"I guess you should," she told him, holding the bottle toward him.

Oliver took the bottle from her, winking at her. "Or I could just undress you and lick it off your skin."

Chloe cocked her head slightly and nodded, considering, "I suppose we could work on that, Arrow."

He grinned. "Let's get to it, Tower." He held his hand out to her.

She glanced down at his offered hand then arched her eyebrows and walked over toward him and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him firmly instead.

He groaned against her mouth, wrapping one arm around her and pulling her against him as he returned the kiss.

After kissing him deeply for a long moment, she reached for his vest and started pulling him toward the stairs, walking backwards as she did, "better keep a firm hold on that bottle."

He glanced down at it, then up at her. "Oh, I intend to."

"Good," she grinned, tugging on the zipper and pulling the vest open, keeping her eyes on him.

"But I intend to hold onto you even tighter."

"I won't break," she promised, wrapping her hands on the both open sides of his vest as she got to the top of the stairs.

Oliver wrapped his arm tighter around her. "Good," he whispered.

Her face softened and she smiled at him, "the one problem with this house is that it takes so damn long to get to the bedroom."

"The good thing about this house is there a lot of bedrooms to choose from." He grinned.

"Sure," she nodded, "but we might get unexpected visitors."

"Only if they want to lose their rights to visit," he told her with a smirk.

"We're close enough now," she grinned, glancing over her shoulder.

Oliver nodded, shrugging out of his vest. "I agree."

"Wait," she arched her eyebrows, "might need one of those arrows to open the bottle," she smirked.

He smirked back at her. "The champagne may have to wait for a little while."

Chloe reached into his Quiver and pulled out an arrow, "the vest can go now," she backed up into the bedroom, "and I will keep this for later."

Oliver raised an eyebrow. "Kinky," he commented, shrugging out of the vest the rest of the way and letting it drop to the floor.

She laughed and lifted the arrow to her mouth, catching it between her teeth like a rose, she wasn't normally this playful but the fact that the stress of the past few months was finally behind them was definitely helping her relax.

He groaned, following her into the bedroom and kicking the door shut behind him.

* * *

Chloe stretched slowly and took a deep breath, making a face when she found herself _extremely_ uncomfortable, "hm," she grunted, opening her eyes and closing them again at the light that was coming through the window.

Oliver groaned softly as he felt her move beside him, his arm tightening around her just a little. "Too early," he mumbled.

"Ow," she said quietly, reaching for her foot and frowning when she found she was still wearing shoes.

He frowned a little as he found his face buried against a lot of lace. "The hell?"

She squinted a little and turned her head to look at him, "why are we on the floor?" She frowned.

"Are we?" He frowned a little more and lifted his head, blinking a few times to clear his vision.

"Or a really uncomfortable bed," she mumbled, shifting her hip because it felt like it was stuck in place.

"What...are you wearing?" he asked in confusion, his gaze sweeping over the short dress she wore.

Chloe rubbed her eyes over her face and shook her head a little, "I don't know," she said quietly.

"It's cute." He couldn't help but grin. "Sorta Madonna-like..."

She made a face and looked over at him, "that green isn't... really your color."

His eyebrows furrowed and then he looked down at himself, blinking as he realized he was wearing a sea-foam tuxedo. "...what the hell?"

"It's cute too..." she said quietly, smiling at him then stilling when she realized there were rose petals all around them, "where are we?"

Oliver lifted his head to look around and paused. "Looks like some kind of hotel room."

"So bright," she said, looking at him then took a deep breath and stood up, "are you okay?"

"Yeah, I think so. I feel okay. A little woozy, but uh--not too bad." He raised his eyebrows as he rose to his feet, as well, pausing when he caught sight of a sparkling jewel on her left hand. "Uh, Chloe?"

"Hm?" She asked, still squinting a little as she turned to face him again.

"Look at your hand," he said softly.

Chloe frowned and paused, lifting her right hand then her left and stilling, eyes widening, "what?"

"Somehow, I have a feeling that we shared more than the floor last night."

She continued to stare at the ring, her eyes widening more and more, "you mean..?"

Oliver raised his eyebrows. "Good morning, Mrs. Queen."

Chloe just continued to stare at him, her heart beating fast against her chest as she tried to make sense of this.

"Breathe," he whispered, reaching out and resting a hand on her shoulder.

She swallowed hard and took a deep breath. "Do you remember anything?"

"Vaguely recall having more than my fair share of champagne. Do you?"

"Just... the same, being in the room and having the champagne," after so much sex, she had been sure she wouldn't be able to walk anymore but apparently her drunken self had disagreed, "wait, do you have one?" She asked, turning her head to look at his hand.

He lifted his left hand up and paused, gazing at the single white gold band there and then glancing at hers. "They match."

Her stomach dropped and she lifted her hand to his, nodding slightly and turning to look at him again. "They do."

Oliver watched her for a moment, shifting closer to her and threading their fingers together. "Could be a lot worse, you know?"

Her heart skipped a beat and she nodded slightly, not even entirely sure why, but this wasn't freaking her out nearly as much as she imagined the idea of marriage would.

He smiled softly, dipping his head to kiss her. He had a feeling that marrying her would be the best decision he'd never remember making.

~Fini~


End file.
